The present invention relates to a system for configuring software in networked open systems in a distributed environment. It also relates to a process implemented by this system.
Generally in data processing, especially in the complex networks of distributed systems, it has proven indispensable to arrange and organize packages of services which are simple to use, user-friendly and efficient, and in particular to offer services for configuring software in the platforms of this distributed environment which are powerful but flexible and quickly implemented. An environment of this type is in fact, widely used at present, and it is known that the use of open, distributed data processing offers enormous advantages since it allows a client, that is the user of an interface, easy access to the various data contained in such systems or machines no matter what the geographical location of this user and regardless of the system in which the data resides. However, while it is desirable for the user to benefit from these advantages during the operating phase, it is also desirable to facilitate the configuration and installation phases, for all kinds of deployments. The term configuration is understood to mean the manipulation of the parameters of a machine, such as the address, the name of the user, the size of the buffer registers, the data related to the software configuration parameters, etc.
Up to now, tools such as SMIT (System Management Interface Tool) or DSMIT (Distributed System Management Interface Tool) were used to configure software in UNIX (registered trademark in the U.S. and other countries, licensed exclusively through X/OPEN Company Limited) platforms which support the AIX (IBM Corp. trademark) operating system. However, with use, it became evident that these tools had major drawbacks. In effect, while the SMIT tool makes it possible to work during the installation, configuration and operating phases, its utilization is nevertheless limited to local systems such as a server, and hence to just one machine, since it was not designed to accommodate either the network aspect or the distributed aspect, which renders it completely ineffective for applications related to networked systems in a distributed environment. As for the DSMIT tool, it has the same characteristics as the SMIT tool except for the fact that it can accommodate the distributed aspect, but it is ineffective in dealing with the network aspect. Thus, with the DSMIT tool, it is possible, for example, to configure several machines at the same time but only with the same address, which, it must be admitted, is very rarely the case in a network.
Another solution can also be used to configure communication software in platforms, which consists of applying a method for distributing software, commonly called "software distribution" by one skilled in the art. A method of this type is generally used by administrators of centrally managed or administrated systems to distribute software to the various administrated platforms. In this case, it is possible to perform an installation, and at the end of this installation to emit a piece of information (which is called a "script" by one skilled in the art, and which is actually a small customization program) containing configuration instructions. However, in order to allow such a configuration, this information, which is not created or constructed automatically, must first be described and entered by a user, which is certainly lacking in simplicity and user-friendliness. Moreover, the syntax of these scripts must conform to strict, constraining rules, particularly in order to support the reentry feature. Reentry, in effect, involves the concept of intelligence, since in order to support it the script must know how to distinguish between an initial activation and a subsequent activation, with the understanding that the result must remain constant, while the action depends on the initial state of the environment upon activation of the script.